1960 Florida Gators football team
American college football season
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The 1960 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1960 college football season. The season was Ray Graves' first of ten and one of his three most successful as the head coach of the Florida Gators football team. Graves' 1960 Florida Gators finished with a 9–2 overall record a 5–1 record in the Southeastern Conference (SEC), placing second among the twelve SEC teams[1]—their best-ever SEC finish to date.
| 1960 Florida Gators football | |
|---|---|
| Conference | Southeastern Conference |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 16 |
| AP | No. 18 |
| Record | 9–2 (5–1 SEC) |
| Head coach |
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| Offensive coordinator | Pepper Rodgers (1st season) |
| Home stadium | Florida Field |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 2 Ole Miss $ | 5 | – | 0 | – | 1 | 10 | – | 0 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 18 Florida | 5 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 9 Alabama | 5 | – | 1 | – | 1 | 8 | – | 1 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 13 Auburn | 5 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tennessee | 3 | – | 2 | – | 2 | 6 | – | 2 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Georgia | 4 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Georgia Tech | 4 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| LSU | 2 | – | 3 | – | 1 | 5 | – | 4 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kentucky | 2 | – | 4 | – | 1 | 5 | – | 4 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tulane | 1 | – | 4 | – | 1 | 3 | – | 6 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mississippi State | 0 | – | 5 | – | 1 | 2 | – | 6 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Vanderbilt | 0 | – | 7 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 17 | vs. George Washington* | W 30–7 | 17,000 | [2] | |||
| September 24 | Florida State* | W 3–0 | 38,000 | [3] | |||
| October 1 | No. 10 Georgia Tech |
| W 18–17 | 39,000 | [4] | ||
| October 8 | vs. Rice* | No. 18 | L 0–10 | 17,535 | [5] | ||
| October 15 | Vanderbilt |
| W 12–0 | 31,000 | [6] | ||
| October 22 | at Louisiana State | W 13–10 | 47,000 | [7] | |||
| October 29 | No. 14 Auburn |
| L 7–10 | 40,000 | [8] | ||
| November 5 | vs. Georgia |
| W 22–14 | 48,622 | [9] | ||
| November 12 | Tulane | No. 20 |
| W 21–6 | 44,000 | [10] | |
| November 26 | at Miami (FL)* | No. 19 |
| W 18–0 | 60,122 | [11] | |
| December 31 | vs. No. 12 Baylor* |
| CBS | W 13–12 | 50,112 | [12] | |
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Before the season
Graves was a former Tennessee Volunteers lineman and assistant under coach Robert Neyland, and became a long-time Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets defensive assistant for coach Bobby Dodd.[14] Graves' arrival in Gainesville heralded a change in the Gators' football outlook: no longer would the Gators espouse Bob Woodruff's conservative, ball control, "go for the tie" philosophy.
During the season
Days before their second game of the season would officially begin, a gambler named Aaron Wagman and a University of Florida student named Phil Silber were arrested due to an attempted bribe at fullback Jon MacBeth before their season-opening game against their in-state college rivals in Florida State University began. These arrests would help lead to the full discovery of what eventually was called the 1961 NCAA University Division men's basketball gambling scandal, led by former NBA All-Star Jack Molinas.[15] That game would later be played without a hitch, though MacBeth would help later testify in court in order to maintain his innocence throughout the situation.
Postseason
The Gators capped their first-ever nine-win season with a hard-fought 13–12 victory over the twelfth-ranked Baylor Bears in the Gator Bowl on New Year's Eve 1960. In the Gator Bowl, the Gators defense halted a 75-yard drive by Baylor on the half-yard line in the first quarter, then set the stage for two second quarter touchdowns. Baylor dropped a pass for the two-point conversion and the win, and quarterback Libertore was voted game MVP.[16]